The Man Who Walked 1,000 Miles
by labyrinthofsuffering11
Summary: Why has the Ninth Doctor shown up at her door with a man she thought long since dead? What are they doing there, and will she join them? Inspiration from Sleeping at Last's cover of I Would Walk 500 Miles.
1. Chapter 1

Rose Tyler groaned. It was an unusually slow day at Torchwood and so Pete had told her she could stay home and work on her side project, the dimension cannon. The frustrating part was she was so close to drafting a working prototype she could feel it...she just couldn't figure out what she was doing wrong.

A tiny little knock sounded on her door, and she smiled. There was only one person that could knock that quietly and it was her little brother, Tony.

"Yeah, Tony?" she called.

The door was pushed open a crack.

"Can I come in?" he asked shyly. "Mummy said you were busy."

Rose sighed. "I am, but you know I always have time for my favorite man."

Tony beamed at that and pushed the door open further. He clambered over to his sister and into her lap. He reached up for her hand, making her heart melt.

"What can I do for you, my love?" she asked.

The toddler scrunched his nose up at the term of endearment. "I builded somethin' I want to show you, Rosie."

She grinned. "Well, what are we layin' about for? Let's go see it then!"

Tony pulled on her hand eagerly and led her down the hall. When they reached the play room, he pointed eagerly to a crudely built area in the center.

Rose waited patiently for an explanation of his newest Lego creation.

"I made the TARDIS, and you, and me, and the Doctor, and mummy, and daddy, and the aliens we're gonna see!" he exclaimed proudly, waiting for pride in Roses face.

Her heart clenched a bit as it always did when it had to with the Doctor. "It's lovely, Tony," she said honestly.

His face fell. "I've made Rosie sad."

"No!" she tried to cover up quickly.

Just then, the doorbell rang downstairs.

Rose sighed, scooping Tony up and placing him on her hip to go answer the door.

"Coming!" she shouted, running down the stairs. She opened the door and said "What-" but that was as far as she got.

A face Rose had thought was lost forever greeted her.

"Rose," he said reverently. Then he took one look at Tony and fainted.

Rose immediately put Tony down on the floor, and placed a hand on his forehead.

"Who's that, Rosie?" Tony asked. "How does he know you? An' why's he done that?"

"I'll explain later, Tony, go get mummy, please!" she exclaimed, turning away from the face she thought she'd never see again to stress to the toddler how it important it was that he hurry.

Tony took off at a run, shouting, "Mummy! There's a man on the doo'step that know Rosie, and she needs you!"

Rose turned her attention back to the 'daft, old face' as this regeneration used to call it, and frowned at the sight before her. She had seen the Doctor change right in front of her, so how could he be here? In this universe to boot?

It was then she heard a large huff coming up the front path, and months of Torchwood training as well of years with the Doctor prepared her to always be on guard. She grabbed the sonic screwdriver where she remembered this Doctor had always left it, and sprang to her feet. She pointed it at the coming invasion, only to find herself further confused.

Jack Harkness, the man she had believed dead, was running towards her, squareness gun pointed right at her face. She dropped the screwdriver first in disbelief.

"Jack?" she asked. "How can you both be here?"

Jack seemed to realize she was there for the first time. "Rosie!" he exclaimed, throwing himself arms first into her body. He scooped her into one of his sweeping hugs, planting a kiss firmly on the top of her head. "The Doctor said he was tracking you here, but how?"

"I think we're both confused here," Rose said, "and the only man that can help us is indisposed, typical." She rolled her eyes and smiled her tongue touched grin in spite of the worry she was feeling.

Jack matched her grin, before frowning at the still form of the Doctor on the ground. "What happened?" he asked, dropping to his knees to check for a pulse.

She laughed, remembering why the silly alien had fainted. "He saw my little brother Tony on my hip, you know him, musta thought he was mine."

Jack laughed heartily at the thought of that, and reached down to pick the Doctor up into his arms. That was the moment Jackie Tyler decided to come running to the rescue, a curious Tony at her hip.

"Rose!" she exclaimed. "Is it himself?" She paused, seeming to take in Jack's form. "Well," she purred, "they certainly get handsomer each time they regenerate, don't they?"

"Mum!" Rose yelled, horrified. "This isn't the Doctor! If you'll take notice to the lump in Jack's arms, he's the Doctor." She pointed at the unmoving form of the previous regeneration, big ears and all. She couldn't help it, she grinned at that. She had missed that face, whether she had admitted it or not.

"Well, who's the one carryin' 'im then?" her mother demanded.

"Mum," Rose said, "meet Captain Jack Harkness. I'm sure Mickey told you stories about him when we came to Cardiff."

"Oh," Jackie said in recognition. "This is Captain Cheesecake."

Jack nodded. "M'um." He placed the Doctor gently upon the couch Rose pointed to and stuck out a hand for Rose's mother. "Captain Jack Harkness, at your service. I can see where Rosie gets her good looks from." He added his usual innuendo with a wink.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Jack, _please_. Not while he's fainted."

"Just splash some cold water, and tell him he's still got a shot," Jack offered with a shrug.

"She's _married_ now Jack, for heaven's sake, with another small child to boot."

Jack sighed. "It seems I'll never find out how the Tyler women are in bed."

Rose laughed as her mom turned red. "Not for lack of tryin' though, eh Jack?"

Jack scowled. "I'll go get some water. Where's your kitchen?" he asked.

"Down the hall, three doors to the left, sweetheart!" Jackie called.

With a salute, he was off.

Rose sighed, flopping down to absentmindedly stroke the shorn head of the Doctor.

"Mummy, who is he?" Tony demanded.

"That's the Doctor," Jackie said.

"But he don't look the same," he accused.

"Remember I told you he changed, Tony?" Rose asked. "This is what he looked like when I first met him."

"Oh!" Tony said brightly. "He's the big eared one?" He frowned at that. "I like the way the other one looks better."

Rose looked appalled, but Jackie snickered. "Me too, Tony. Me and big hair got along better, too."

"Oi!" Rose said. "If you two are quite done? I'd like to figure out why these two are here in the first place." She dropped her voice so Jack and Tony couldn't hear. "You know I told you Jack died, mum, back on the Game Station. The Doctor regenerated, you saw it! I don't know how this happened!" she finished exasperatedly, putting her head in her hands.

Tony toddled down from his mother and into his sister's lap to hold her hand. "This is good, right?" he asked.

Rose nodded. "The best," she assured, with a smile.

Jack came back with a cup of water, and promptly dumped it onto the nine hundred plus year old Time Lord.

The Doctor awoke, spluttering, wiping the water from his face and looking about wildly. "What happened?" he demanded. "Where's Rose?"

"M right here, Doctor," she assured from her position at the head of his body.

His eyes widened at the sight of Tony again, and he gulped. "Is that-"

"My little brother, you daft Time Lord," Rose said, rolling her eyes. "Isn't that right, Tony T?"

He nodded enthusiastically, and sprang into the lap of the Doctor who looked very uncomfortable. "I'm Tony!" he introduced himself, holding out a hand for him to shake.

The Doctor took it skeptically, and was surprised the little boy pumped it up and down with more force than he should have. "I'm Rosie's little brother, an' she's told me lots an' lots about the Doctor."

"Oh yeah?" he asked, looking over at Rose with an eyebrow raised. "What sorts of things?"

"That you're an alien, an' you have a spaceship that goes through time an' space, an' it used to be and Jack over there travelin' together, even though she missed just travelin' alone sometimes, but she loved Jack still, an' that she lo-"

Rose sprang to her feet, clamping a hand over Tony's mouth. "That's enough, Tony, thanks!"

Jack smirked amusedly. "Little tyke is very, very smart. Just like his older sister," he said, winking at Rose and making her blush.

"Doctor," Rose said, not looking at anyone else. "D'you mind tellin' me what you're doin' here?"

"That's what I was hopin' you could tell me, Rose," the Doctor said. "Who should go first?"


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Thank you all so much! I didn't expect that many follows, favorites or reviews overnight, because it has been the longest since I've been able to finish a chapter of anything. That being said, I know I'm uploading this other chapter today but I am goin to try to stick to a strict weekly schedule of updates on Mondays or Tuesdays when I have off. Thank you again for coming along on this adventure, you're fantastic!

Rose sighed. "Why don't you both go first? Tell me how you ended up here."

The Doctor looked her over for a moment before frowning. "You're older," he realized. "We're not really too sure to be honest with you, Rose. We lost you, back there on the Game Station. I- well, Jack can tell you more about than me, but he found me and we just helped them rebuild for a few weeks while we figure out how to move on. Then Jack comes into the TARDIS one day with these coordinates, sayin' some girl had handed it to him. We didn't know whether to trust them or not, but they led us here, and obviously to you."

Jack filled in for the Doctor, "He was real messed up about you, Rosie, me too. But with him...I didn't see the Doctor standing there with your broken body. I saw a ghost, and he wouldn't let go of you. We had to take you back to Jackie and-" he winced. "It was brutal. I never want to see anything like it again. But maybe...maybe this is a second chance, given to us by the mysterious girl."

Rose swiped at her eyes when she realized Jack's story had given her such strong emotions. That could have been what happened to her, and it had apparently, in some parallel universe like this one. How many times had Jackie Tyler come close to something similar in all the time she had been with the Doctor? Too many to count, and even more than her mother knew.

She looked at her mother, a sad smile directed towards her. She knew, that no matter what, she was going to go with these two men and her mother would be stuck wondering an waiting again. The one left behind. She now understood what that was like, and se hated herself for even thinking about doing it again, but they were her two best friends come back to her bad she had to figure out what ha happened, and if she could get back to the other Doctor to warn him.

"I suppose it's my turn," she said quietly, directing her attention back to them. "I was on the Game Station traveling with the both of you, but both of you died. The Doctor saved me, and he regenerated into a new man. Jack died on the game station, and we went back to the Powell Estates. We visited this world, where another version of my mum existed, my dad was still alive, and I wasn't even a thought. We battled Cybermen and the other Jackie Tyler died. Then we went back home, except there was Torchwood. They brought the Cybermen back as the Daleks, and Pete came for my mother. The Doctor tried to have me leave too, but I wouldn't let him-"

The Doctor smiled at her defiance.

"-so we found a way to suck the creatures into the void, but there was a huge possibility we would too. There were these levers we were holdin' on to, and it Wasn't anyone's fault, but I slipped and fell towards the void. Pete caught me just in time, but at the cost of never seeing the Doctor again. I've been strands her for 3 years, workin' on somethin' to bring me back."

The Doctor frowned. "That still doesn't explain how we got here then, or why. We didn't have time to investigate the girl-"

"Thought that's what I was bein' enlisted for," Rose said, smiling her tongue touched grin.

"Well, I- d'you want to come?"

"I'd love you to come."

"Okay," she agreed easily, beaming away like a loon.

Jackie just looked at her resignedly, and she got up to hug her mother reassuringly.

"You know I will be home as soon as I can."

"Yeah, with him," Jackie said wisely. "You just tell that spaceman, he'd better take better care of you this time, 'cause I won't be there to whip him into shape."

Jack snorted.

"An' you too, pretty boy," her mother scolded.

Jack sobered and saluted Jackie. "With my life, m'um."

She nodded all business-like. "If you're waitin' for my approval," she said to Rose, "that's a good as it's gonna get."

She laughed.

The Doctor shifted uncomfortably on the couch now that Rose had gone. "So, er, TARDIS?" He rubbed his neck awkwardly.

Rose sent him a sympathetic look. "Let me just pack some stuff, and we can be on our way."

He nodded. "I'll go get her ready, then. Jack?"

"I'll wait for Rosie," he said, smiling at her.

"Sure," she agreed, motioning for Jack to follow.

She pushed open the door to her room, quickly pulling down a duffel from the closet. Jack looked around funnily.

"This is your room?" He asked.

"Yeah."

"It looks so…"

"Clinical?" Rose supplied.

"Exactly."

"I never thought I was stayin' here long," she told him. "Always thought as soon as I found a way, I'd be right back to the TARDIS."

"Rosie," Jack said softly. "Stop for a moment."

She paused. "What is it?"

"I hope you know, this isn't your Doctor. I know you want him to be, and I know he looks and sound the same. But remember, the pain of losing you is still fresh. It's only been a couple weeks. I can tell you from experience, it's hard to replace someone, even with anther version of themselves."

"I know that," she said firmly, maybe more harshly than she should have. "I do. I won't push him, Jack. I know how that feels. After he regenerated he became a completely different man."

Jack nodded. "Okay, if you're sure. I just love you, Rosie, and don't wanna see you get hurt."

"Love you too, Jack. And I'm tougher than I look." She bumped into his shoulder. "Now stop actin' like a mother hen, and help me pack."

"Cluck, cluck," he joked, tickling her for a few moments.

She was interrupted once more by the sound of excited little footsteps running down the hall.

"Rosie, Rosie, Rosie!" Tony yelled, huffing from being out of breath. "I'm ready!"

Rose looked at him, and her heart broke. His tiny suitcase was packed with a corner of his favorite blanket hanging out, and he was dragging his teddy by the arm.

"Where are we going?" she asked, even though she was pretty sure what the answer already was.

"With the Doctor!" Tony announced proudly. "Travelin'!"

Rose smiled sadly. "Oh, Tony."

His face fell, and he dipped his teddy and suitcase. "What?"

Jack sensed the need for the rescue. "Hey, Tony, did Rose ever tell you about the time we went to the gummy bear planet?" He scooped him up and carried him down the hall, as Rose sent him a wave of gratitude.

She quickly finished stuffing clothes into her bag, and went downstairs to face the music. Jack was still talking to Tony animatedly, using his hands. Tony was giggling as her mother grimly watched.

"Let me tell you something about the ones that get left behind!"

Rose winced. She walked over to Tony and bent down to look at him.

"You're leavin' me," he accused her.

"I am," she said, "but only 'cause it's dangerous, and I don't want you to get hurt. You're the most important person to me, Tony T, and I want you to have somethin'. Keep it for me till I get back, okay?"

He nodded at her tearfully. "What is it?"

Rose reached up to unclasp the small chain that she ha never taken off since she was nineteen. She smiled at Tony and clasped it around his neck, fingering the key fondly. "TARDIS key. Don't lose this, alright?"

He looked at her in awe. "But that's yours!" he insisted.

"And now it's yours," she said gently. She kissed him on the forehead and picked him up to hold him close for a few minutes. "I love you, okay?"

"I love you too, Rosie," Tony said, his hand now firmly clutching the key.

Rose hugged her mother. "I promise I'll try to come back."

"Don't beat yourself up if you can't, sweetheart," Jackie said lovingly. "We will miss you, but this is important."

"Give Pete my love, yeah? He was better than I deserved."

Jackie smiled. "Course I will. Now you go whip those men in shape." She pulled back with a ruffle to Roses hair.

Rose waved at the two of them, and followed Jack outing the house and towards the TARDIS.


End file.
